London is endowed （赋予） with more green spaces than almost any other capital city. Many of the parks belong to the Grown and began life as royal hunting grounds. They were later opened up to the rich, who went to see and be seen, but they were also notorious as dueling （决斗的） grounds. Today the Royal Parks are open to all and are highly valued as places for exercise or relaxation.

St James's Park 

St James's Park which is close to Buckingham Palace is the oldest of the Royal Parks and is generally considered to be the most beautiful. There are lots of colorful flower beds and a great variety of trees and the lake is home to wildfowl （野禽） from all over the world, including pelicans （塘鹅） , who are not averse （反对） to changing their diet of fish to include the occasional pigeon.

Hyde Park 

Hyde Park is London 's largest park and forms a continuous expanse of green with Kensington Gardens . Along the southern side of the park ran the Route du Roi, or King's Road, which has been corrupted into Rotten Row, where today you can see riders exercising their horses. On the Serpentine Lake there are boats for hire and on Christmas Day it is the venue for a swimming race, the Peter Ran Cup, which takes place even if the lake is covered with ice. On Sundays at Speakers' Corner, near Marble Arch, you can listen to soapbox orators （街头演说者） airing their views on all sorts of topics.

Green Park 

Green Park which is to the north of Buckingham Palace is so called because there are no formal flower beds, though the grass is carpeted with flowers in springtime. In 1749 Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks accompanied a spectacular firework display here to celebrate the end of the War of the Austrian Succession.